Mild winter leads to healthier deer this year

When Clint Luedtke sees deer roaming Minnesota's lush forests and open pastures, he can't help but notice that they have one thing in common this year.

"These deer are fat," he said with a laugh. "They're healthy. They're definitely healthy."

That's because the ground was bare most of the winter, said Luedtke, the new landowner assistant specialist for the state Department of Natural Resources. He joined the agency a couple months ago to help landowners whose property or crops suffered damage by southeastern Minnesota's deer herd.

by Elizabeth Baier, MPR (Locally broadcast: 89.1)

When Clint Luedtke sees deer roaming Minnesota's lush forests and open pastures, he can't help but notice that they have one thing in common this year.

"These deer are fat," he said with a laugh. "They're healthy. They're definitely healthy."

That's because the ground was bare most of the winter, said Luedtke, the new landowner assistant specialist for the state Department of Natural Resources. He joined the agency a couple months ago to help landowners whose property or crops suffered damage by southeastern Minnesota's deer herd.